This Day in Music, September 11: Jack and Diane

1956: Police were called to break up a crowd of rowdy
teenagers following the showing of the film Rock Around The Clock at the
Trocadero Cinema in London, England. The following day, the Times printed a
reader's letter that said: "The hypnotic rhythm and the wild gestures have
a maddening effect on a rhythm loving age group and the result of its impact is
the relaxing of all self-control." The film was quickly banned in several
English cities.

1961: After George Martin insisted that session drummer Andy White take
Ringo Starr's place, the Beatles returned to EMI Studios in London for a third
attempt at recording their first single. "Love Me Do" was selected to be The
Beatles' first A-side, with "P.S. I Love You" on the flip side (a
reversal of the original plan). The single that was released on October 5
featured a version of "Love Me Do" with Ringo on drums, but the album Please
Please Me included a version with Andy White on drums.

1982: John "Cougar" Mellencamp became the only male artist to
have two singles in the US Top Ten as well as the No.1 album. "Jack and Diane"
was No.4, while "Hurts So Good" was at No.8. His album American Fool was at
No.1 for the first of nine weeks.

1988: Michael Jackson appeared at Aintree Racecourse in Liverpool, England
on his Bad World Tour. Over 3,000 fans were treated by the St. John ambulance
service for passing out, hysteria, and being crushed amongst the crowd of
125,000 fans, the largest concert of the 123-date world tour.

2001: Walking to work in New York (as a comic book illustrator) Gerard Way
witnessed the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center. The day’s events inspired
him to start a band, which became My Chemical Romance, with Way becoming their
lead singer.

2006: A study from the University of Leicester found that more than a
quarter of classical music fans had tried cannabis. Researchers were trying to
find out what people's taste in music revealed about their lifestyles. The UK
study also revealed that blues buffs are the most likely to have received a
driving penalty. Hip hop and dance music fans were more likely to have multiple
sex partners and were among the biggest drug-takers surveyed. More than 2,500
people were interviewed for the study, which was published in the scientific
journal Psychology of Music.

A former musician, Neil was in the 80's group The Cheaters who were once signed to EMI's Parlophone label, and released three albums. He was also a radio presenter and is still a regular music pundit on various BBC stations. Neil is the founder of the award winning web site This Day in Music which is…